Thursday's Best WNBA Bet
Los Angeles Sparks at Washington Mystics (-8, 148.5)
The Los Angeles Sparks got their first taste of life without Candace Parker this past week.
The Sparks, who are without their star forward for the rest of the season due to a shoulder injury, fell 78-75 to the Connecticut Sun but managed to cover the spread as 4.5-point home underdogs Friday.
The scrappy Sparks are in a jam. The WNBA salary cap prevents them from signing a replacement for Parker, leaving the team to either waive a player or strike a trade in order to get some help in the frontcourt.
"It definitely makes a difference," Sun forward Tina Charles, who scored 26 points and grabbed 19 rebounds Friday, said of Parker's absence. "When you have size, it makes you more confident out there. They had to worry more because we had a lot of post presence out there."
Los Angeles will run into a very strong Washington frontcourt. The Mystics’ top two scorers are forwards Monique Currie and Crystal Langhorne, who combine for 31 points per game – 40 percent of the team’s overall production.
With Parker sidelined, 6-foot-2 forward Tina Thompson is starting at center while 6-foot-1 forward DeLisha Milton-Jones joins her in the paint. The Sparks have 6-foot-5 rookie Chanel Mokango, who has played sparingly, and 6-foot-2 reserve Lindsay Wisdom-Hylton, who scored eight points and pulled down three rebounds Friday.
Pick: Washington -8
LOS ANGELES (3 - 8) at WASHINGTON (7 - 4)
Top Trends for this game.
LOS ANGELES is 4-12 ATS (-9.2 Units) after a non-conference game over the last 2 seasons.
WASHINGTON is 18-9 ATS (+8.1 Units) in May, June, or July games over the last 2 seasons.
WASHINGTON is 184-229 ATS (-67.9 Units) in all games since 1997.
WASHINGTON is 31-52 ATS (-26.2 Units) when playing with 3 or more days rest since 1997.
WASHINGTON is 8-18 ATS (-11.8 Units) in home games after a division game over the last 3 seasons.
Head-to-Head Series History
WASHINGTON is 3-1 against the spread versus LOS ANGELES over the last 3 seasons
LOS ANGELES is 3-2 straight up against WASHINGTON over the last 3 seasons
3 of 5 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons
LOS ANGELES vs. WASHINGTON
Los Angeles is 0-5 ATS in its last 5 games
Los Angeles is 3-9 SU in its last 12 games
Washington is 5-1 ATS in its last 6 games when playing Los Angeles
Washington is 5-12 SU in its last 17 games when playing Los Angeles